Once Upon a Time

I used to believe in fairy tales.  I loved them when I was a kid.  I imagined, or perhaps simply just accepted it as my destiny (ha. ha.) , that one day I would live in a castle and that I would have a perfect life with perfect everything and that my perfect prince charming would adore me and love me until the end of time.

The problem is, life sort of got in the way.

I do not live in a castle.  I'm thankful for the home I have but it's far from what I pictured it would be.  I do not have perfect everything.  I do not own a horse. My pet shih tzu  resembles an orc, but that's as close as we get to mythical creatures around here. My chariot is a 2000 Dodge Caravan with a saggy roof and an aroma that has yet to be categorized by mankind. Prince Charming does not exist.  More often than not, the princess has to save herself, or at least come to terms with the fact that she may have unreasonable expectations of the person she's chosen to be her ever after.

I think young women, especially since the advent of Pinterest and Twilight, have those same unreasonable expectations of life.  Everything is going to be beautiful and perfect, and this brooding guy with movie star looks is going to show up and love you forever.  That's not how it works, ladies.  Not at all.

Take my advice. Find someone who you can be friends with.  The biggest myth about finding your "true love" is that it's some huge romantic thing.  The best marriages are based on friendship, because a friend, especially a best friend, will never leave you in the cold or kick you to the curb, will never make you feel bad about yourself, and will never treat you like you are less than important in their life.  Find someone that will love you to all the planets.  Find someone you can talk to, who can make you laugh, and who can be sensitive to your feelings.  Find someone who supports your dreams and who will let you stretch and live a little.  When you get married, you don't become one person.  You're still two people.  Find someone who understands that.

Now say you manage to do all this.  You've found this incredible friend, who you also love.  You get married.  You start a life together.  That's when you can say, Once Upon a Time.  Because the story is just beginning, and it's a story you write together.